Daily Wrap Up - July 30

Yahoo gets hard look from investors following deal
Yahoo Inc shares fell for a second straight day after the company announced a Web search partnership with Microsoft Corp that failed to live up to Wall Street expectations. The deal, in which Yahoo essentially outsources search to Microsoft, is being viewed by analysts as more positive for the software company than for Yahoo.Read Full Article here.

Cuomo: Some U.S. banks’ 2008 bonuses exceeded income
Several large, troubled banks that received government assistance paid hundreds of employees bonuses of at least $1 million last year, according to New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo. Cuomo criticized the top U.S. banks for paying boom-time bonuses in an era of economic peril. At least 4,793 bankers and traders were paid more than $1 million in bonuses last year.

Exxon Mobil's 2Q profit down 66 pct
Exxon Mobil Corp., the largest oil company in the world, said today its second quarter profit declined 66 percent as crude oil and natural gas prices plunged compared to a year ago. Exxon's 2Q net income was $3.95 billion or 81 cents per share down from $11.68 billion or $2.22 per share a year earlier.

Shell's 2Q net profit falls 70 percent
Royal Dutch Shell Plc, the world's second largest oil firm by market value (non government controlled) reported a decline of 70 percent for its net profit during the second quarter. The firm cited lower oil prices and refining margins.

Disney 3Q earnings plunge 26 percent
The Walt Disney Co. on Thursday reported earnings for the third fiscal quarter plunged 26 percent and revenues were down 7 percent. Third-quarter fell to $8.59 billion from the same period a year ago. The entertainment firm, which earns income from media properties, amusement parks and consumer products, said the economy had an impact on results.

Jobless claims rise above forecasts
In the past week the number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless benefits rose to numbers slightly above the expected numbers according to government data on Thursday. Initial claims for state unemployment insurance benefits rose 25,000 to a seasonally adjusted 584,000 in the week ended July 25.

SouthWest bids for bankrupt Frontier Air
Southwest Airlines Co. has submitted a bid worth at least $113.6 million to acquire Frontier Airlines Holdings Inc under a bankruptcy auction, the companies said today. Southwest said it has made a nonbinding proposal in accordance with procedures set up by U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. The bid is greater than Republic Airways’ $108.75 million bid announced on June 22. Frontier field a petition in April to reorganize under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.

Hacking the iPhone as easy as sending an SMS
A Mac security expert has discovered a technique that hackers could use to take control of Apple Inc. computers and iPhone's in order to steal data, disproving the long believed theory that Apple products are more secure than PCs. Read Full Article here.

Video game industry looks for second-half comeback
Major game publishers Activision Blizzard Inc and Electronic Arts Inc will report quarterly results next week, on the heels of dismal June U.S. video game sales, which registered their biggest drop since 2000.

NRG Energy posts 2Q net income higher than expected
NRG Energy Inc. reported a net income of $433 million or $1.56 a share on the second quarter, compared with $127 million or 48 cents a share last year. The firm attributed the higher than expected results to the acquisition of Reliant Energy's Texas retail business.